University of Leeds AFM Facility
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Leeds
Department Name: Physics and Astronomy
Abstract
This funding provides a dedicated facility manager for the atomic force microscope (AFM) facility situated within the School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Leeds. The two year grant will enable us to recruit a technical specialist in the applications of AFM after which this experimental officer post will be sustainably funded through consolidation of existing research projects and pump priming of new collaborations. The high quality science that this facility generates across a wide range of different research fields will allow us to recover the true costs of operating the facility via a combination of grant funding and industrial collaboration. The role of the facility manager will be to oversee the efficient day-to-day running of the suite of seven state-of-the-art AFMs.
AFM is a versatile high resolution surface scanning microscopy that can produce topographical and mechanical maps for a wide range of hard and soft materials. It uses a sharp probe, nanometres in radius, to scan across surfaces to produce images with resolution down to the atomic scale. The probe is mounted on a force sensing flexible cantilever spring that can measure the mechanics of materials and molecules to sub-piconewton accuracy. AFM can operate in vacuum, liquid and air environments making it highly suited as an analytical technique for studying a wide range of materials under different conditions. The facility contains instruments that are optimised for high resolution imaging, sensitive and accurate force measurement, high throughput and high speed imaging and a new combined instrument platform integrating AFM with advanced optical microscopy techniques.
The versatility of AFM means it is a critical instrument to enable high quality nanoscience, nanotechnology, soft condensed matter, advanced and functional materials research. Examples of collaborative interdisciplinary research carried out in the facility include: magnetic nanostructures, magnetic spin-ice, skyrmions, crystallisation, synthetic polymers, biomembranes, food nanomechanics, single biomolecule mechanics, therapeutic microbubbles, DNA origami nanostructures, nanoparticles, anti-cancer peptides and biomaterials. These topics relate to research and development of applications within: data storage, data integrity, green energy generation, energy storage, oil recovery, drug delivery, drug formulation, catalysis, biomineralization, anti-cancer agents, hydrogels, tissue engineering, food science and textile development.
We expect the new post to augment impact of UK science within Physics, Chemistry, Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Electronic Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Biomedicine, Biological Sciences, Earth and Environment, Food Sciences and Dentistry.
Current research from the facility falls within the EPSRC themes of Physical Science, Engineering, Manufacturing the Future and Healthcare Technologies. Specific research areas include: Biophysics and soft matter, biomaterials and tissue engineering, magnetism and magnetic materials, spintronics, polymer materials, particle technology, surface science and synthetic biology. The multi-disciplinary research relates to Grand Challenges in: Physics of Life, Physics far from Equilibrium, Nanoscale design of functional materials and Healthcare technologies - developing future therapies. The activities that the facility supports align with the EPSRC Balancing Capabilities strategy since it covers such abroad range of research within the Physical Sciences and Engineering, producing high impact research of societal importance.
Twenty-first century society will be built on understanding and controlling material down to the nanometre scale. AFM is a key tool for characterising and manipulating materials at the nanoscale, be they natural, bioinspired or synthesised. The Leeds AFM facility can make a significant impact across a wide range of important scientific challenges.
AFM is a versatile high resolution surface scanning microscopy that can produce topographical and mechanical maps for a wide range of hard and soft materials. It uses a sharp probe, nanometres in radius, to scan across surfaces to produce images with resolution down to the atomic scale. The probe is mounted on a force sensing flexible cantilever spring that can measure the mechanics of materials and molecules to sub-piconewton accuracy. AFM can operate in vacuum, liquid and air environments making it highly suited as an analytical technique for studying a wide range of materials under different conditions. The facility contains instruments that are optimised for high resolution imaging, sensitive and accurate force measurement, high throughput and high speed imaging and a new combined instrument platform integrating AFM with advanced optical microscopy techniques.
The versatility of AFM means it is a critical instrument to enable high quality nanoscience, nanotechnology, soft condensed matter, advanced and functional materials research. Examples of collaborative interdisciplinary research carried out in the facility include: magnetic nanostructures, magnetic spin-ice, skyrmions, crystallisation, synthetic polymers, biomembranes, food nanomechanics, single biomolecule mechanics, therapeutic microbubbles, DNA origami nanostructures, nanoparticles, anti-cancer peptides and biomaterials. These topics relate to research and development of applications within: data storage, data integrity, green energy generation, energy storage, oil recovery, drug delivery, drug formulation, catalysis, biomineralization, anti-cancer agents, hydrogels, tissue engineering, food science and textile development.
We expect the new post to augment impact of UK science within Physics, Chemistry, Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Electronic Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Biomedicine, Biological Sciences, Earth and Environment, Food Sciences and Dentistry.
Current research from the facility falls within the EPSRC themes of Physical Science, Engineering, Manufacturing the Future and Healthcare Technologies. Specific research areas include: Biophysics and soft matter, biomaterials and tissue engineering, magnetism and magnetic materials, spintronics, polymer materials, particle technology, surface science and synthetic biology. The multi-disciplinary research relates to Grand Challenges in: Physics of Life, Physics far from Equilibrium, Nanoscale design of functional materials and Healthcare technologies - developing future therapies. The activities that the facility supports align with the EPSRC Balancing Capabilities strategy since it covers such abroad range of research within the Physical Sciences and Engineering, producing high impact research of societal importance.
Twenty-first century society will be built on understanding and controlling material down to the nanometre scale. AFM is a key tool for characterising and manipulating materials at the nanoscale, be they natural, bioinspired or synthesised. The Leeds AFM facility can make a significant impact across a wide range of important scientific challenges.
Planned Impact
The pump priming of a dedicated facility manager (FM) will maximise usage of instrumentation in the Leeds AFM facility, maintain equipment, train new users and actively promote the facility with far more efficiency and efficacy than the current increasingly time limited academic applicants, SDC and NHT. This will impact four constituencies. Firstly, there will be direct and timely support for the very wide range of research that is currently underway, by School of Physics and Astronomy academics, and the groups they collaborate with in the Schools of Chemistry, Food Sciences, Chemical, Electrical and Mechanical Engineering, and Faculties of Biological Sciences and Medicine (see Case For Support). Secondly, new collaborations are being generated at an ever increasing rate from the four EPSRC CDTs making use of AFM Facility, namely CP3, SOFI, MSE and TERM, and recent enquiries from a fifth, the iT-CDT (Integrated Tribology). This large number of new users requires close support in the initial stages of a project. The third area is industry, which has also grown from a trickle in the last 10 years to a flood in the last 2, with ongoing projects with PepsiCo International, Pfizer, Syngenta, Johnson Matthey, and smaller more preliminary projects with P&G, Merck and Astra-Zeneca. These projects are either funded directly at 100% FEC via PDRA's, or as 50% funded PhD project studentships through the CDT's. A further route has developed in the last year through consultancy, and the previous encumbering legal and financial issues surrounding IP, NDA's and contracts have now been solved, the process is well understood. The charge for consultancy can be paid directly into the Facility account and help fund the Facility Manager. Finally, the facility manager will take the major day-to-day load from SDC, allowing him to pursue new projects, and concentrate on lending expert advice where it is needed, providing solutions to industry, and to other academics who do not realise how much AFM could assist their research.
All seven existing instruments are state-of-the-art, having a capital value of £1.9M, and allied to the experience of the two applicants (and their long term collaborators) in developing and applying new techniques, create a facility that whilst currently recognised as a major centre for AFM in the UK (as recognised by the number of national conferences we have hosted, and will host in 2018), could easily grow to be internationally leading. This would impact very positively on the University of Leeds which also houses a vast range of new top-specification electron microscope, including two FEI Titan Krios Cryo-TEM's. In two year's time this advanced microscopy instrumentation will be co-located in the basement of the new Physics/Bragg centre alongside the AFM Facility (in custom built low noise and thermally stable laboratories), which should lead to many new opportunities and synergies. Our instruments form a complementary suite of AFM functionality that spans across the EPSRC remit, from hard to soft condensed matter research. The newest addition is a combined confocal optical/AFM platform to be installed in March 2018 which will greatly increase our research capability. This correlative system is unique to the UK with only one other system currently in Europe. Possessing a Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscope (FLIM) is relatively unusual in itself, but combined with the ultra-high resolution of AFM with ability to measure the same pixel simultaneously with the optical, will create an incredibly powerful system that should be world beating. The Facility is located in a wider Physics department that has Soft Matter as a major speciality, covered by two experimental groups Soft Matter Physics (SMP) and Molecular and Nanoscale Physics (MNP), both exceptionally well equipped for the characterisation of soft matter.
All seven existing instruments are state-of-the-art, having a capital value of £1.9M, and allied to the experience of the two applicants (and their long term collaborators) in developing and applying new techniques, create a facility that whilst currently recognised as a major centre for AFM in the UK (as recognised by the number of national conferences we have hosted, and will host in 2018), could easily grow to be internationally leading. This would impact very positively on the University of Leeds which also houses a vast range of new top-specification electron microscope, including two FEI Titan Krios Cryo-TEM's. In two year's time this advanced microscopy instrumentation will be co-located in the basement of the new Physics/Bragg centre alongside the AFM Facility (in custom built low noise and thermally stable laboratories), which should lead to many new opportunities and synergies. Our instruments form a complementary suite of AFM functionality that spans across the EPSRC remit, from hard to soft condensed matter research. The newest addition is a combined confocal optical/AFM platform to be installed in March 2018 which will greatly increase our research capability. This correlative system is unique to the UK with only one other system currently in Europe. Possessing a Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscope (FLIM) is relatively unusual in itself, but combined with the ultra-high resolution of AFM with ability to measure the same pixel simultaneously with the optical, will create an incredibly powerful system that should be world beating. The Facility is located in a wider Physics department that has Soft Matter as a major speciality, covered by two experimental groups Soft Matter Physics (SMP) and Molecular and Nanoscale Physics (MNP), both exceptionally well equipped for the characterisation of soft matter.
Publications
Abou-Saleh RH
(2019)
Molecular Effects of Glycerol on Lipid Monolayers at the Gas-Liquid Interface: Impact on Microbubble Physical and Mechanical Properties.
in Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids
Andablo-Reyes E
(2019)
Microgels as viscosity modifiers influence lubrication performance of continuum.
in Soft matter
Asquith NL
(2022)
Fibrin protofibril packing and clot stability are enhanced by extended knob-hole interactions and catch-slip bonds.
in Blood advances
Bones D
(2022)
Ablation Rates of Organic Compounds in Cosmic Dust and Resulting Changes in Mechanical Properties During Atmospheric Entry
in Earth and Space Science
Caven B
(2022)
Reverse engineering of a wool fibre to mimic the structural hierarchy of a gecko's foot.
in Bioinspiration & biomimetics
Coubrough H
(2020)
Assembly of miscible supramolecular network blends using DDA·AAD hydrogen-bonding interactions of pendent side-chains
in Polymer Chemistry
Duval C
(2021)
Elimination of fibrin ?-chain cross-linking by FXIIIa increases pulmonary embolism arising from murine inferior vena cava thrombi
in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Feller T
(2022)
Why fibrin biomechanical properties matter for hemostasis and thrombosis.
in Journal of thrombosis and haemostasis : JTH
Goodchild JA
(2019)
Nanoscale Substrate Roughness Hinders Domain Formation in Supported Lipid Bilayers.
in Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids
Hallac F
(2019)
Micro-mechanical properties of single high aspect ratio crystals
in CrystEngComm
Description | The AFM facility is now successfully established with a lab manager that was initially established and fully funded on this grant. Several years have passed since the end of the intial grant, and the manager Dr Lekshmi Kailas has been funded via 6 other grant applications from various academics, and some alumni funding. We are now working to move this role onto University core funding which will make it permanent, critical for the long term success of a critical piece of University infrastructure, and a key technique located in the Bragg Centre for Advanced Materials Research. The lab is the core technique of about 6 academic, but users comes from across almost all faculties of the University of Leeds, collaborators from across the UK, and increasingly from industry via the Bragg Centre and Royce Institute. Support for users has led directly to new projects, and purchase of new instrmentation (Bruker Nanoracer High speed AFM) . In terms of direct research output, due to the ability of AFM to image structure in cell membranes at the nanoscale, we have learned how to manipulate experimental conditions in order to understand the factors that control domain size. With this knowledge we have grown domains to a size where they are clearly visible by optical microscopy, and accessible by a huge range of optical techniques. Papers are currently being written and 2 PhD students are currently making use of this capability, which will be sure to have a large impact once fully disseminated in journal papers. |
Exploitation Route | By the huge increase of users and projects that this faciltiy is now able to undertake with a full time manager who can train everyone, rather than relying on a time-limited academic who became the rate limiting step. This facilitating access and maximising the impact of high cost instrumentation bought via UKRI grants. |
Sectors | Agriculture Food and Drink Manufacturing including Industrial Biotechology Pharmaceuticals and Medical Biotechnology |
Description | Not findings, but this grant was designed to maximise the access and impact of a pre-existing facility. The AFM facility at Leeds was established in 2005, and has grown steadily over that time, with more academics joining the group who make use of AFM as the core technique. However, the facility was managed solely by Dr SImon Connell, a full time academic and lecturer, who did not have the time to meet demand for training and assistance in running experiments. By the time the grant was awarded the lab consisted of 8 state-of-the-art AFM's, and the use was mainly by local academics and by collaborators across the university, with little industry and commercial engagement. This has now been transformed with the ability to meet all requests for training, access and experimental assistance, freeing time for collaborating with industry on research, or running samples on a consultancy/contract research basis. These links have allowed us to grow relationships with industry, which have then gone on to help fund PhD studentships, and income has further supported operation of the facility. Dr Lekshmi Kailas, who was appointed on this grant in 2020 (following the initial appointment of Dr James Goodchild), has now (late 2023) been made a permanent member of staff in the School of Physics and Astronomy as an Experimental Officer. This is mainly funded through part recovery on grants that make heavy use of the AFM Facility. The grant acted to pump-prime the position, allowing us to establish the need for the role, which was essential to keep the facility operational and support the core work of about 6 academics, as well as provide services across the whole university, both within the Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences (FEPS) , but also with collaborations and imaging services to Faculties of Design, Medicine and Health, Environment (School of Food Science and Nutrition) and Biological Sciences. |
Sector | Agriculture, Food and Drink,Chemicals,Electronics,Manufacturing, including Industrial Biotechology,Pharmaceuticals and Medical Biotechnology |
Impact Types | Economic |
Description | Fibrin at the Interface of Bleeding, Thrombosis and Tissue repair |
Amount | £1,323,069 (GBP) |
Funding ID | RG/18/11/34036 |
Organisation | British Heart Foundation (BHF) |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 01/2019 |
End | 12/2023 |
Description | High-Speed and High-Resolution Imaging Facility |
Amount | £750,000 (GBP) |
Organisation | The Wolfson Foundation |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 05/2021 |
Description | INFORM 2020 - Molecules to Manufacture: Processing and Formulation Engineering of Inhalable Nanoaggregates and Microparticles |
Amount | £1,925,568 (GBP) |
Funding ID | EP/N025075/1 |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 12/2016 |
End | 03/2021 |
Description | Multiscale structural basis of photoprotection in plant light-harvesting proteins |
Amount | £344,240 (GBP) |
Funding ID | BB/T000023/1 |
Organisation | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 01/2020 |
End | 09/2023 |
Title | Mobile surface lipid bilayers |
Description | Development of new method to achieve optical scale phase separation and mobility of lipid phase separated domains in Surface Lipid Bilayers (SLBs), allowing for the first time the study of complex multi component bilayers containing membrane proteins of interest with multiple fluoresence lifetime reporting fluorophores, FCS, and correlative high-resolution AFM. |
Type Of Material | Technology assay or reagent |
Year Produced | 2022 |
Provided To Others? | No |
Impact | Unlocks a bottleneck on an enormous range of research possibilities, opening the possibility of doing optical microscopy based methods on a system that was previously invisible. |
Title | Nanofibre manipulation |
Description | Development of new method to manipulate and measure single nanofibres using Nanolithography package on correlative JPK Nanowizard and PicoQuant Microtime 200 system together with high quality confocal imaging of fluorescently labelled fibres, with FRET labelling to reveal which domains are stretching in bio-fibres. |
Type Of Material | Technology assay or reagent |
Year Produced | 2021 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | This ability can be translated to the study of mechanics of other nanofibres such as cellular microfibrils. |
URL | https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.2103226118 |
Title | Nanomechanical properties of brittle-friable materials |
Description | Advances have been made in performing force-distance nanoindentation measurements on friable materials that are brittle but weak. The technique itself is an adaptation of standard AFM force microscopy, using calibrated probes with known cross-sectional area. The data/curves produced are a challenge to analyse, and are characterised by so-called "load drop" events where the material yield stress is overcome and the material crumbles or fractures, rather than gradually yield with plastic deformation. Thuss very deep indentation can occur, and bespoke software was written to analyse the data. This technique was developed to measure the properties of meteroids and pyrolysed rock samples that contain organic material. It was then applied to the study of drug crystal agglomerates used in inhalable pharmaceutical formulations in order to understand their mechanical behaviour. |
Type Of Material | Technology assay or reagent |
Year Produced | 2020 |
Provided To Others? | No |
Impact | It is currently in use in two projects and publications are already in advanced preparation |
Title | Quantitative soft friction at the nanoscale |
Description | The understanding of friction between soft interfaces at the micro- and nano- level is poorly understood, but of great relevance. Biology, and biotechnology rely on the interaction of biological surfaces and these are invariably soft, and deformable, so control and measurement of contact area and hence deformation is key. We have developed the first fully quantitative device capable of measuring these forces, based around an Atomic Force Microscope in Friction Force Mode (FFM), we attach a colloidal sized spherical particle manufactured in our laboratory made of a cross-linked polymer of controllable modulus and control;able size. Thus we have a microscopic tribomter capable of measuring soft-soft nano-contacts. |
Type Of Material | Technology assay or reagent |
Year Produced | 2021 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | One paper published so far on the technique and proof of operation. https://doi.org/10.1039/D0NR06527G https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2021/nr/d0nr06527g Friction between soft contacts at nanoscale on uncoated and protein-coated surfaces Evangelos Liamas, a Simon D. Connell, Morfo Zembyla, Rammile Ettelaie and Anwesha Sarkar Nanoscale, 2021, 13, 2350 |
URL | https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2021/nr/d0nr06527g |
Description | Antimicrobial polyelectrolytes |
Organisation | Newcastle University |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Characterisation of molecular film multilayers on electrospun PCL nanofibres. The nanofibrous material is biocompatible, and the films are polyelectrolytes derived from Manuka honey which has antimicrobial properties.AFM imaging allowed not only direct detection of this film, invisible to electron microscopy, we could measure the coverage and fit an absorption isotherm, determine the layer-by-layer groath mechanism, and visualise the molecular polymeric molecular arrangement in the polycaprolactone fibres to 1 nm resolution. |
Collaborator Contribution | The use of antibiotics has been the cornerstone to prevent bacterial infections; however, the emergency of antibiotic-resistant bacteria is still an open challenge. This work aimed to develop a delivery system for treating soft tissue infections for: (1) reducing the released antimicrobial amount, preventing drug-related systemic side effects; (2) rediscovering the beneficial effects of naturally derived agents; and (3) preserving the substrate functional properties. For the first time, Manuka honey (MH) was proposed as polyelectrolyte within the layer-by-layer assembly. Biomimetic electrospun poly(ecaprolactone) meshes were treated via layer-by-layer assembly to obtain a multilayered nanocoating, consisting of MH as polyanion and poly-(allylamine-hydrochloride) as polycation. Physicochemical characterization demonstrated the successful nanocoating formation. Different cell lines (human immortalized and primary skin fibroblasts, and primary endothelial cells) confirmed positively the membranes cytocompatibility, while bacterial tests using Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria demonstrated that the antimicrobial MH activity was dependent on the concentration used and strains tested. |
Impact | E Mancuso,C Tonda-Turo, C Ceresa, V Pensabene, SD Connell, L. Fracchia, P. Gentile. "Potential of Manuka Honey as a natural polyelectrolyte to develop biomimetic nanostructured meshes with antimicrobial properties". (2019) Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology 7(344) 04 Dec 2019 talk at 11th World Biomaterials Congress 19-24/5/2019 Glasgow, Scotland |
Start Year | 2019 |
Description | Johnson Matthey particle absprbtion |
Organisation | Johnson Matthey |
Department | Johnson Matthey Catalysts |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Private |
PI Contribution | PI Dr David HArottle, co-I's Dr Simon Connell, Dr Nick Warren have engaged with Johnson Matthey for a PhD project (funded by iCASE) to study the absorption of particles to surfaces under static and flow conditions, as a function of environmental conditions, using both optical and AFM methods combined to cover length scales, and verify detail of optical signal of deposition using correlative optical AFM. |
Collaborator Contribution | Project supervision, provision of experimental samples. |
Impact | This collaboration is multidisciplinary involving chemistry, materials engineering and physics. |
Start Year | 2019 |
Description | Pepsi flavour delivery |
Organisation | PepsiCo |
Department | Nutrition Dept PepsiCo |
Country | United States |
Sector | Private |
PI Contribution | Dr Simon, Prof Anwesha Sarkar, Prof Brent Murray has engaged with PepsiCo for a PhD project via the EPSRC SOFI CDT to study a new class of edible materials and phases for the delivery of flavour compounds. This will make extensive use of the nanoscale characterisation capabilities provided by the AFM Facility and the expertise built-up in the understanding of the mechanics of soft materials. |
Collaborator Contribution | Project supervision, provision of experimental samples. |
Impact | This collaboration is multidisciplinary involving food science and physics. |
Start Year | 2022 |
Description | Quorn Foods mycoprotein |
Organisation | Quorn Foods Limited |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Private |
PI Contribution | Prof Brent Murray, Dr Simon Connell and Prof Anwesha Sarkar Dr. Simon Connell have engaged with Quorn Foods for a PhD project (funded by EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training Molecules to Products) to better understand the ultrastructure, mechanics and binding interactions of mycoprotein. The combined AFM/FLIM technology in the AFM Facility and support from the manager is an essential part of the project; it enables visualising fluorescently labelled regions of interest and discriminate components of the complex mixture at the micro-scale, and map mechanics to the nanometre scale. |
Collaborator Contribution | Project supervision, provision of experimental samples. |
Impact | This collaboration is multidisciplinary involving food science, microbiology and physics. |
Start Year | 2020 |
Description | ZnO Quantum Dot thin films |
Organisation | Brunel University London |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Characterisation of spin coated thin films. Accurate depth measurements to a precision of 0.5 nm, as a function of rotational speed (500-5000rpm) |
Collaborator Contribution | Prof. P. Kathirgamanathan and Kumar Muttulingam (Dept. of Chemical engineering, Brunel University London · Wolfson Centre for Materials Processing). OLED/Quantum Dot display devices research. |
Impact | paper is currently being written and a talk has been submitted for an Innovate UK meeting. |
Start Year | 2019 |
Description | combined AFM-FLIM microscopy study of bilayer membrane on stretched flexible PDMS 11-12/9/19 and 1 week in October 2019 |
Organisation | Durham University |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Providing expertise and equipment in order to study the effect of stretching a lipid bilayer membrane on a flexible PDMS support, combinig AFM and fluoresence optical micropscopy in the same area. PhD student Rachel Goodband (PIs Dr Magarita Staykova and Prof Colin Bain). |
Collaborator Contribution | The PDMS device and the overall project, part of the PhD study by Rachel Goodband |
Impact | Successful imaging of the bilayer patch edge by both optical and AFM imaging, revealing the high resolution effect that was ambiguous in optical imaging. |
Start Year | 2019 |
Description | A plenary talk at RMS AFM SPM 3/4-Novemer 2020 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | I gave an invited plenary talk at the UKs main Atomic Force Microscopy conference, which has an international reach. Hosted by University of Sheffield (Prof Jamie Hobbs, Dr Alice Pyne, Physics) the conference was delayed from the summer, and eventually took place online. The invite came pre-lockdown. Dr Simon Connell University of Leeds Dr Simon Connell is an Associate Professor in the School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Leeds. After graduating with a PhD in Biophysics in 1999, he joined Leeds in 2001, and since 2005 has managed a cross-faculty EPSRC supported AFM facility. He studies a wide range of systems, with a focus on the structure, dynamics and nanomechanics of soft matter and biological systems. His main research focus is on lipid membrane phase morphology and dynamics, but with the versatility of AFM comes the opportunity to study a diverse array of topics, and current research includes blood clot structure and mechanics, hydrogels and microgels, nanotribology, high speed imaging of polymer dynamics, nanomechanical vs temperature analysis of complex blends of materials in manufactured products and food, and particle adhesion and fragmentation of samples ranging from drug crystals to meteoroids. Sessions Invited: Quantifying Dynamics in High-Speed AFM Tuesday @ 1:05 PM |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
URL | https://www.rms.org.uk/rms-event-calendar/2020-events/rms-afm-spm-meeting-2020.html |
Description | AFM User meeting and workshop in association with Bruker |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | 17-18 January 2023, hosted a 2 day AFM Annnula Uder meeting, a workshop and conference in association with Bruker, for about 90 attendees, in the Bragg Centre. 50% of meeting was workshop consisting of 4 parallel session taking place in main AFM Facility lab, and across other labs due to high numbers. Meeting was very successful, with lots of excellent feedback. Several collaborations were initiated. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
Description | Advanced Materials Show and Ceramics UK, Telford, 9-11th July 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | Stand to describe activity of the AFM Facility as part of the Bragg Centre for Advanced Materials Research , and advertise its capabilities and how to access it. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
URL | https://advancedmaterialsshow.com/ |
Description | Borchers 26-4-19 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | Associated with SOFI CDT, Visit to UoL from Borchers (Coatings, Additives, Catalysts) on 26th April 2019 for half day series of presentations, discussions and tour. Aim was to explore potential for new projects, and discuss solutions. Included academics from Durham and Edinburgh universities (also part of SOFI) |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Feature in the Bragg Centre for Materials Research Annual Report for 2020/2021 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Featured in the Bragg Centre for Materials Research Annual Report for 2020/2021 as the Experimental Officer in AFM under ' Managing Our Facilities' |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
URL | https://www.leeds.ac.uk/bragg-centre-materials-research |
Description | Johnson Matthey, Sonning, Reading 22-10-19 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | Presnetations given during site visit to Johnson Matthey, Sonning, Describing expertise, capability of Leeds AFM Facility, and a sample of current research project. Aim was to generate new projects, and advertise latest state-of-the-art technology and expertise at the University of Leeds. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Nestle Away Day, University of Leeds |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | An industry/academic workshop, giving presentations on expertise and capability on the part of the academics from various UoL faculties, and possible projects from the industry side, with the aim of developing ongoing projects. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
Description | NuNano's 'Women in AFM' campaign for November 2021 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | Feature on Dr Lekshmi Kaias, Facility Manager for the Leeds AFM Facility supported by this grant, in NuNano's 'Women in AFM' campaign for November 2021 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
URL | https://www.nunano.com/women-in-afm-2/lekshmi-kailas |
Description | Royce Institute Winter School 15th January 2020 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | A 3 day workshop on Advanced Materials Characterisation, organised by Royce Institute, University of Leeds. AFM Facility was a half day, on 21st January, including a 1.5 hour overview lecture (2 x 45 mins) followed by 2.5 hour hands-on lab demo, split into two groups and rotated, with Dr Simon Connell and Dr Lekshmi Kailas (funded on the AFM Facility grant). Dr Connell took the class through HIgh speed AFM and quantitative nanomechanical measurements, and Dr Kailas gave the goup a class in combined AFM -confocal fluoresence microscopy with Fluoresence Lifetime Imaging (FLIM). Group of approx 25 was composed mainly of PhD students from across UK. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
URL | https://www.royce.ac.uk/events/materials-phd-winter-school/ |
Description | visit to Harwell Central Laser Facility with PespsiCo International 24-7-19 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | Exploratory meeting, sharing of ideas and expertise between Harwell and AFM Facility at Leeds, with view to progressing future funded projects with PepsiCo International. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |